Method of transmitting sounding reference signal and electronic device therefor

ABSTRACT

A transmission of a sounding reference signal by an electronic device is provided. A method of an electronic device includes transmitting a signal via a first antenna subset including at least one of a plurality of antennas, measuring an emission environment of the plurality of antennas, using the signal, determining at least one antenna to be used for transmitting a sounding reference signal (SRS), based on the emission environment, and transmitting the SRS via the at least one determined antenna. The emission environment includes a strength of a reflected signal that corresponds to the signal and is reflected by the first antenna subset, or a strength of a reception signal that corresponds to the signal and is received by a second antenna subset including at least one remaining antenna.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is based on and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) of a Korean patent application number 10-2019-0038991, filed onApr. 3, 2019, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosureof which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

The disclosure relates to a method for transmitting a sounding referencesignal (SRS) and an electronic device therefor.

2. Description of Related Art

A cellular wireless communication system may be designed to achieve ahigh throughput. The throughput may be increased by various ways, suchas extending a bandwidth, increasing a modulation order, adaptingmultiple input multiple output (MIMO) technology, or the like. Amongthem, MIMO technology is a technology that increases a channel capacityusing a plurality of transmission antennas and a plurality of receptionantennas, and the efficiency of MIMO technology may be determined basedon the accuracy of a precoding matrix and channel estimation.

The above information is presented as background information only toassist with an understanding of the disclosure. No determination hasbeen made, and no assertion is made, as to whether any of the abovemight be applicable as prior art with regard to the disclosure.

SUMMARY

In order to use multiple input multiple output (MIMO) technology, achannel between a base station and an electronic device that accessesthe base station may be estimated. If a time division duplex (TDD) bandis used, channel reciprocity is established. Accordingly, an electronicdevice may transmit a signal (e.g., a sounding reference signal (SRS))for channel estimation, and a base station may perform channelestimation and may calculate a precoding matrix. For example, theelectronic device may transmit sounding reference signals by alternatelyusing a plurality of antennas according to a transmit antenna switching(TAS) operation. However, if the electronic device is present in anemission environment in which an increase in channel capacity by MIMOtechnology is not expected, the transmission of a sounding referencesignal according to a TAS operation may cause unnecessary powerconsumption.

Aspects of the disclosure are to address at least the above-mentionedproblems and/or disadvantages and to provide at least the advantagesdescribed below. Accordingly, an aspect of the disclosure is to providea method of transmitting a sounding reference signal by taking intoconsideration an emission environment, and an electronic devicetherefor.

Additional aspects will be set forth in part in the description whichfollows and, in part, will be apparent from the description, or may belearned by practice of the presented embodiments.

In accordance with an aspect of the disclosure, a method of anelectronic device is provided. The method includes transmitting a signalvia a first antenna subset including at least one of a plurality ofantennas measuring the emission environment of the plurality ofantennas, using the signal determining at least one antenna to be usedfor transmitting a sounding reference signal (SRS), based on theemission environment and transmitting the SRS via the at least onedetermined antenna. The emission environment may include the strength ofa reflected signal that corresponds to the signal and is reflected bythe first antenna subset, or the strength of a reception signal thatcorresponds to the signal and is received by a second antenna subsetincluding at least one remaining antenna.

In accordance with another aspect of the disclosure an electronic deviceis provided. The electronic device includes a plurality of antennas atleast one reception front end module (FEM) configured to process areception signal received via at least one of the plurality of antennasat least one transmission/reception FEM configured to process atransmission signal transmitted via at least one of the plurality ofantennas and a reception signal received via at least one of theplurality of antennas at least one switch configured to form a pathamong the at least one reception FEM, the at least one transmission FEM,and the plurality of antennas and at least one processor. The at leastone processor is configured to transmit a signal via a first antennasubset including at least one of the plurality of antennas measure theemission environment of the plurality of antennas, using the signaldetermine at least one antenna to be used for transmission of a soundingreference signal (SRS), based on the emission environment and transmitthe SRS via the at least one determined antenna. The emissionenvironment includes the strength of a reflected signal that correspondsto the signal and is reflected by the first antenna subset, or thestrength of a reception signal that corresponds to the signal and isreceived by a second antenna subset including at least one remainingantenna.

A method and an electronic device therefor, according to variousembodiments of the disclosure, may examine an environment where a gainis obtained based on multiple input multiple output (MIMO) technology,and may selectively perform a transmit antenna switching (TAS)operation, thereby preventing unnecessary power consumption.

Other aspects, advantages, and salient features of the disclosure willbecome apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detaileddescription, which, taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings,discloses various embodiments of the disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of certainembodiments of the disclosure will be more apparent from the followingdescription taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an electronic device in a networkenvironment according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of an electronic device that performs a transmitantenna switching (TAS) operation according to an embodiment of thedisclosure;

FIG. 3A is a block diagram of a communication module in an electronicdevice according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 3B is a block diagram of a communication module in an electronicdevice according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a transmission/reception front end module(FEM) of a communication module in an electronic device according to anembodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a reception FEM of a communication modulein an electronic device according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a process of transmitting a soundingreference signal (SRS), by an electronic device according to anembodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 7A is a flowchart illustrating a process of measuring an emissionenvironment using a reception signal, by an electronic device accordingto an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 7B is a diagram illustrating circuits used when an electronicdevice measures an emission environment using a reception signalaccording to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 8A is a flowchart illustrating a process of measuring an emissionenvironment using a reflected signal, by an electronic device accordingto an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 8B is a diagram illustrating circuits used when an electronicdevice measures an emission environment using a reflected signalaccording to an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a travel path of a signal used when anelectronic device measures an emission environment according to anembodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a process of transmitting a soundingreference signal, by an electronic device according to an embodiment ofthe disclosure; and

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating resource usage by an electronic deviceaccording to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Throughout the drawings, it should be noted that like reference numbersare used to depict the same or similar elements, features, andstructures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following description with reference to the accompanying drawings isprovided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of variousembodiments of the disclosure as defined by the claims and theirequivalents. It includes various specific details to assist in thatunderstanding but these are to be regarded as merely exemplary.Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize thatvarious changes and modifications of the various embodiments describedherein can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of thedisclosure. In addition, descriptions of well-known functions andconstructions may be omitted for clarity and conciseness.

The terms and words used in the following description and claims are notlimited to the bibliographical meanings, but, are merely used by theinventor to enable a clear and consistent understanding of thedisclosure. Accordingly, it should be apparent to those skilled in theart that the following description of various embodiments of thedisclosure is provided for illustration purpose only and not for thepurpose of limiting the disclosure as defined by the appended claims andtheir equivalents.

It is to be understood that the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the”include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.Thus, for example, reference to “a component surface” includes referenceto one or more of such surfaces.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an electronic device in a networkenvironment according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 1, an electronic device 101 in a network environment100 may communicate with an electronic device 102 via a first network198 (e.g., a short-range wireless communication network), or anelectronic device 104 or a server 108 via a second network 199 (e.g., along-range wireless communication network). According to an embodimentof the disclosure, the electronic device 101 may communicate with theelectronic device 104 via the server 108. According to an embodiment ofthe disclosure, the electronic device 101 may include a processor 120,memory 130, an input device 150, a sound output device 155, a displaydevice 160, an audio module 170, a sensor module 176, an interface 177,a haptic module 179, a camera module 180, a power management module 188,a battery 189, a communication module 190, a subscriber identificationmodule (SIM) 196, or an antenna module 197. In some embodiments of thedisclosure, at least one (e.g., the display device 160 or the cameramodule 180) of the components may be omitted from the electronic device101, or one or more other components may be added in the electronicdevice 101. In some embodiments of the disclosure, some of thecomponents may be implemented as single integrated circuitry. Forexample, the sensor module 176 (e.g., a fingerprint sensor, an irissensor, or an illuminance sensor) may be implemented as embedded in thedisplay device 160 (e.g., a display).

The processor 120 may execute, for example, software (e.g., a program140) to control at least one other component (e.g., a hardware orsoftware component) of the electronic device 101 coupled with theprocessor 120, and may perform various data processing or computation.According to one embodiment of the disclosure, as at least part of thedata processing or computation, the processor 120 may load a command ordata received from another component (e.g., the sensor module 176 or thecommunication module 190) in volatile memory 132, process the command orthe data stored in the volatile memory 132, and store resulting data innon-volatile memory 134. According to an embodiment of the disclosure,the processor 120 may include a main processor 121 (e.g., a centralprocessing unit (CPU) or an application processor (AP)), and anauxiliary processor 123 (e.g., a graphics processing unit (GPU), animage signal processor (ISP), a sensor hub processor, or a communicationprocessor (CP)) that is operable independently from, or in conjunctionwith, the main processor 121. Additionally or alternatively, theauxiliary processor 123 may be adapted to consume less power than themain processor 121, or to be specific to a specified function. Theauxiliary processor 123 may be implemented as separate from, or as partof the main processor 121.

The auxiliary processor 123 may control at least some of functions orstates related to at least one component (e.g., the display device 160,the sensor module 176, or the communication module 190) among thecomponents of the electronic device 101, instead of the main processor121 while the main processor 121 is in an inactive (e.g., sleep) state,or together with the main processor 121 while the main processor 121 isin an active state (e.g., executing an application). According to anembodiment of the disclosure, the auxiliary processor 123 (e.g., animage signal processor or a communication processor) may be implementedas part of another component (e.g., the camera module 180 or thecommunication module 190) functionally related to the auxiliaryprocessor 123.

The memory 130 may store various data used by at least one component(e.g., the processor 120 or the sensor module 176) of the electronicdevice 101. The various data may include, for example, software (e.g.,the program 140) and input data or output data for a command relatedthererto. The memory 130 may include the volatile memory 132 or thenon-volatile memory 134.

The program 140 may be stored in the memory 130 as software, and mayinclude, for example, an operating system (OS) 142, middleware 144, oran application 146.

The input device 150 may receive a command or data to be used by anothercomponent (e.g., the processor 120) of the electronic device 101, fromthe outside (e.g., a user) of the electronic device 101. The inputdevice 150 may include, for example, a microphone, a mouse, a keyboard,or a digital pen (e.g., a stylus pen).

The sound output device 155 may output sound signals to the outside ofthe electronic device 101. The sound output device 155 may include, forexample, a speaker or a receiver. The speaker may be used for generalpurposes, such as playing multimedia or playing record, and the receivermay be used for an incoming call. According to an embodiment of thedisclosure, the receiver may be implemented as separate from, or as partof the speaker.

The display device 160 may visually provide information to the outside(e.g., a user) of the electronic device 101. The display device 160 mayinclude, for example, a display, a hologram device, or a projector andcontrol circuitry to control a corresponding one of the display,hologram device, and projector. According to an embodiment of thedisclosure, the display device 160 may include touch circuitry adaptedto detect a touch, or sensor circuitry (e.g., a pressure sensor) adaptedto measure the intensity of force incurred by the touch.

The audio module 170 may convert a sound into an electrical signal andvice versa. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the audiomodule 170 may obtain the sound via the input device 150, or output thesound via the sound output device 155 or a headphone of an externalelectronic device (e.g., an electronic device 102) directly (e.g.,wiredly) or wirelessly coupled with the electronic device 101.

The sensor module 176 may detect an operational state (e.g., power ortemperature) of the electronic device 101 or an environmental state(e.g., a state of a user) external to the electronic device 101, andthen generate an electrical signal or data value corresponding to thedetected state. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the sensormodule 176 may include, for example, a gesture sensor, a gyro sensor, anatmospheric pressure sensor, a magnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor,a grip sensor, a proximity sensor, a color sensor, an infrared (IR)sensor, a biometric sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, oran illuminance sensor.

The interface 177 may support one or more specified protocols to be usedfor the electronic device 101 to be coupled with the external electronicdevice (e.g., the electronic device 102) directly (e.g., wiredly) orwirelessly. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the interface177 may include, for example, a high definition multimedia interface(HDMI), a universal serial bus (USB) interface, a secure digital (SD)card interface, or an audio interface.

A connecting terminal 178 may include a connector via which theelectronic device 101 may be physically connected with the externalelectronic device (e.g., the electronic device 102). According to anembodiment of the disclosure, the connecting terminal 178 may include,for example, a HDMI connector, a USB connector, a SD card connector, oran audio connector (e.g., a headphone connector).

The haptic module 179 may convert an electrical signal into a mechanicalstimulus (e.g., a vibration or a movement) or electrical stimulus whichmay be recognized by a user via his tactile sensation or kinestheticsensation. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the hapticmodule 179 may include, for example, a motor, a piezoelectric element,or an electric stimulator.

The camera module 180 may capture a still image or moving images.According to an embodiment of the disclosure, the camera module 180 mayinclude one or more lenses, image sensors, image signal processors, orflashes.

The power management module 188 may manage power supplied to theelectronic device 101. According to one embodiment of the disclosure,the power management module 188 may be implemented as at least part of,for example, a power management integrated circuit (PMIC).

The battery 189 may supply power to at least one component of theelectronic device 101. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, thebattery 189 may include, for example, a primary cell which is notrechargeable, a secondary cell which is rechargeable, or a fuel cell.

The communication module 190 may support establishing a direct (e.g.,wired) communication channel or a wireless communication channel betweenthe electronic device 101 and the external electronic device (e.g., theelectronic device 102, the electronic device 104, or the server 108) andperforming communication via the established communication channel. Thecommunication module 190 may include one or more communicationprocessors that are operable independently from the processor 120 (e.g.,the application processor (AP)) and supports a direct (e.g., wired)communication or a wireless communication. According to an embodiment ofthe disclosure, the communication module 190 may include a wirelesscommunication module 192 (e.g., a cellular communication module, ashort-range wireless communication module, or a global navigationsatellite system (GNSS) communication module) or a wired communicationmodule 194 (e.g., a local area network (LAN) communication module or apower line communication (PLC) module). A corresponding one of thesecommunication modules may communicate with the external electronicdevice via the first network 198 (e.g., a short-range communicationnetwork, such as Bluetooth™, wireless-fidelity (Wi-Fi) direct, orinfrared data association (IrDA)) or the second network 199 (e.g., along-range communication network, such as a cellular network, theInternet, or a computer network (e.g., LAN or wide area network (WAN)).These various types of communication modules may be implemented as asingle component (e.g., a single chip), or may be implemented as multicomponents (e.g., multi chips) separate from each other. The wirelesscommunication module 192 may identify and authenticate the electronicdevice 101 in a communication network, such as the first network 198 orthe second network 199, using subscriber information (e.g.,international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI)) stored in thesubscriber identification module 196.

The antenna module 197 may transmit or receive a signal or power to orfrom the outside (e.g., the external electronic device) of theelectronic device 101. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, theantenna module 197 may include an antenna including a radiating elementcomposed of a conductive material or a conductive pattern formed in oron a substrate (e.g., printed circuit board (PCB)). According to anembodiment of the disclosure, the antenna module 197 may include aplurality of antennas. In such a case, at least one antenna appropriatefor a communication scheme used in the communication network, such asthe first network 198 or the second network 199, may be selected, forexample, by the communication module 190 (e.g., the wirelesscommunication module 192) from the plurality of antennas. The signal orthe power may then be transmitted or received between the communicationmodule 190 and the external electronic device via the selected at leastone antenna. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, anothercomponent (e.g., a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC)) other thanthe radiating element may be additionally formed as part of the antennamodule 197.

At least some of the above-described components may be coupled mutuallyand communicate signals (e.g., commands or data) therebetween via aninter-peripheral communication scheme (e.g., a bus, general purposeinput and output (GPIO), serial peripheral interface (SPI), or mobileindustry processor interface (MIPI)).

According to an embodiment of the disclosure, commands or data may betransmitted or received between the electronic device 101 and theexternal electronic device 104 via the server 108 coupled with thesecond network 199. Each of the electronic devices 102 and 104 may be adevice of a same type as, or a different type, from the electronicdevice 101. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, all or some ofoperations to be executed at the electronic device 101 may be executedat one or more of the external electronic devices 102, 104, or 108. Forexample, if the electronic device 101 should perform a function or aservice automatically, or in response to a request from a user oranother device, the electronic device 101, instead of, or in additionto, executing the function or the service, may request the one or moreexternal electronic devices to perform at least part of the function orthe service. The one or more external electronic devices receiving therequest may perform the at least part of the function or the servicerequested, or an additional function or an additional service related tothe request, and transfer an outcome of the performing to the electronicdevice 101. The electronic device 101 may provide the outcome, with orwithout further processing of the outcome, as at least part of a replyto the request. To that end, a cloud computing, distributed computing,or client-server computing technology may be used, for example.

An electronic device 101 configured as shown in FIG. 1 may access a basestation. For example, the base station may comply with long termevolution (LTE), LTE-advanced (LTE-A), or the 5^(th) generation (5G)standard. Multiple input multiple output (MIMO) technology may be usedfor increasing communication capacity between the base station and theelectronic device 101. MIMO technology may transmit or receive differentstreams on the same frequency, using a plurality of antennas. MIMOtechnology enables an increase in a data transmission rate (data rate),which is theoretically proportional to the number of antennas. In orderto improve MIMO gain, channel information of a channel from each antennaof a base station to each antenna of a terminal needs to be recognized,and a downlink precoding matrix needs to be generated based on thechannel information.

The channel reciprocity of a time division duplex (TDD), which supportsdownlink communication and uplink communication in the same frequency,may be used for recognizing the channel information. If the channelreciprocity is established, the result of estimation of an uplinkchannel may be applied to a downlink channel For example, channelinformation estimated using a sounding reference signal transmitted fromthe electronic device 101 may be used as channel information used fordetermining a downlink precoding matrix.

For channel estimation, which is required for MIMO transmission, theelectronic device 101 may transmit a sounding reference signal (SRS).The SRS is transmitted for channel estimation, which is required forMIMO transmission, and thus, the SRS may be transmitted via a pluralityof antennas which are to be used for MIMO reception. If SRSs aretransmitted via a plurality of antennas, the electronic device 101 maytransmit SRSs via the plurality of antennas according to a transmitantenna switching (TAS) operation.

FIG. 2 is a diagram of an electronic device that performs a TASoperation according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 2, the electronic device 101 may include a singletransmission circuit 292. The transmission circuit 292 is a circuitincluding at least one of a power amplifier (PA), a low noise amplifier(LNA), a duplexer, a switch, or a filter, and may be referred to as aFEM. If sounding reference signals (SRSs) are transmitted via fourantennas 290 a, 290 b, 290 c, and 290 d, it may be difficult tosimultaneously transmit SRSs via the four antennas 290 a, 290 b, 290 c,and 290 d since the number of transmission circuits 292 are limited.According to the TAS operation, the transmission circuit 292 issequentially connected to the four antennas 290 a, 290 b, 290 c, and 290d using the switch 294. Accordingly, the electronic device 101 maytransmit SRSs via the four antennas 290 a, 290 b, 290 c, and 290 d.

FIG. 3A is a block diagram the communication module 190 in theelectronic device 101 according to an embodiment of the disclosure. FIG.3A illustrates the configuration of the communication module 190 forsupporting the TAS operation, and the configuration includes fourantennas and a single FEM including a transmission circuit.

Referring to FIG. 3A, the communication module 190 may include a firstantenna 290 a, a second antenna 290 b, a third antenna 290 c, a fourthantenna 290 d, a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC) 392, atransmission/reception FEM 394, a transmission switch 294, a firstreception FEM 396 a, a first switch 398 a, a second reception FEM 396 b,a second switch 398 b, a third reception FEM 396 c, and/or a thirdswitch 398 c.

The first antenna 290 a may be connected to the transmission/receptionFEM 394 depending on the state of the transmission switch 294. Thesecond antenna 290 b may be connected to the transmission/reception FEM394 or the first reception FEM 396 a, depending on the states of thetransmission switch 294 and the first switch 398 a. The third antenna290 c may be connected to the transmission/reception FEM 394 or thesecond reception FEM 396 b, depending on the states of the transmissionswitch 294 and the second switch 398 b. The fourth antenna 290 d may beconnected to the transmission/reception FEM 394 or the third receptionFEM 396 c, depending on the states of the transmission switch 294 andthe third switch 398 c.

The RFIC 392 may generate a signal to be transmitted via at least one ofthe first antenna 290 a, the second antenna 290 b, the third antenna 290c, and the fourth antenna 290 d, or may interpret a signal received viaat least one of the first antenna 290 a, the second antenna 290 b, thethird antenna 290 c, and the fourth antenna 290 d. The RFIC 392 mayperform at least one of signal modulation/demodulation, frequencymodulation, and/or analog/digital conversion.

The transmission/reception FEM 394 may include a circuit for processinga transmission signal and a reception signal. For example, thetransmission/reception FEM 394 may perform at least one operation amongamplification of a transmission signal, amplification of a receptionsignal, and/or filtering a transmission signal or reception signal. Thetransmission FEM 394 may be referred to as “transmission/receptionpath”, “low noise amplifier power amplifier module-with duplexer(LPAMiD)”, or other terms having a technical meaning equivalent thereto.

Each of the first reception FEM 396 a, the second reception FEM 396 b,and the third reception FEM 396 c may include a circuit for processing areception signal. For example, each of the first reception FEM 396 a,the second reception FEM 396 b, and the third reception FEM 396 c mayperform at least one operation among amplification of a reception signaland/or filtering a reception signal. Each of the first reception FEM 396a, the second reception FEM 396 b, and the third reception FEM 396 c maybe referred to as “reception path”, “low noise amplifier-FEM (LFEM)”, orother terms having a technical meaning equivalent thereto.

The transmission switch 294, the first switch 398 a, the second switch398 b, or the third switch 398 c may form a signal path among differentcomponents. The connection state of each of the transmission switch 294,the first switch 398 a, the second switch 398 b, or the third switch 398c may be changed according to the control of the processor (e.g., acommunication processor or the processor 120 of FIG. 1). According to anembodiment of the disclosure, if the TAS operation is performed, atleast one of the first switch 398 a, the second switch 398 b, or thethird switch 398 c may be controlled to connect at least one of thefirst reception FEM 398 a, the second reception FEM 398 b, or the thirdreception FEM 398 c, and the transmission switch 294, and thetransmission switch 294 may be controlled to sequentially connect aselected number of antennas and the transmission/reception FEM 394.

FIG. 3B is a block diagram of a communication module in an electronicdevice according to an embodiment of the disclosure. FIG. 3B illustratesa configuration of the communication module 190 for supporting a TASoperation, and the configuration includes four antennas and two FEMsincluding transmission circuits.

Referring to FIG. 3B, the communication module 190 may include the firstantenna 290 a, the second antenna 290 b, the third antenna 290 c, thefourth antenna 290 d, the RFIC 392, a first transmission/reception FEM394 a, a first transmission switch 294 a, a secondtransmission/reception FEM 394 b, a second transmission switch 294 b,the first reception FEM 396 a, the first switch 398 a, the secondreception FEM 396 b, and/or the second switch 398 b.

Each of the first antenna 290 a and the second antenna 290 b may beconnected to the first transmission/reception FEM 394 a or the firstreception FEM 396 a, depending on the states of the first transmissionswitch 294 a and the first switch 398 a which are controlled by aprocessor (e.g., a communication processor or the processor 120 of FIG.1). Each of the third antenna 290 c and the fourth antenna 290 d may beconnected to the second transmission/reception FEM 394 b or the secondreception FEM 396 b, depending on the states of the second transmissionswitch 294 b and the second switch 398 b which are controlled by aprocessor (e.g., a communication processor or the processor 120 of FIG.1).

According to the example of FIG. 3B, two transmission/reception FEMs 394a and 394 b may be included, unlike FIG. 3A. The electronic device 101may transmit sounding reference signals (SRSs) via two antennas (e.g.,the first antenna 290 a and the third antenna 290 c) in parallel, usingthe two transmission/reception FEMs 394 a and 394 b.

FIG. 3A illustrates the case in which a single transmission circuit(e.g., the transmission/reception FEM 394) is included. FIG. 3Billustrates the case in which two transmission circuits (e.g., the firsttransmission/reception FEM 394 a and the second transmission/receptionFEM 394 b) are included. According to other embodiments of thedisclosure, although three or more transmission circuits are included,an antenna switching operation and/or operations according to variousembodiments described below may be performed.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a transmission/reception FEM (e.g., thetransmission/reception FEM 394, 394 a, or 394 b) of the communicationmodule in the electronic device according to an embodiment of thedisclosure.

Referring to FIG. 4, the transmission/reception FEM 394, 394 a, or 394 bmay include a power amplifier (PA) 410, a low noise amplifier (LNA) 420,a switch 430, a filter 440, and/or a coupler 450. A transmission signalmay be amplified by the power amplifier 410, may pass through the switch430, may be filtered by the filter 440 based on a transmission band, andmay be output to an antenna. A reception signal provided from an antennamay be filtered by the filter 440 based on a reception band, may passthrough the switch 430, and may be amplified by the low noise amplifier420. According to another embodiment of the disclosure, the low noiseamplifier 420 may be omitted. If the low noise amplifier 420 is omitted,an RFIC (e.g., the RFIC 392) that receives a reception signal mayinclude a low noise amplifier. The coupler 450 may include a forwardterminal 452 and/or a reverse terminal 454. The forward terminal 452 maybe used to extract a signal delivered from the filter 440 to an antenna.The reverse terminal 454 may be used to extract a signal delivered froman antenna to the filter 440.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a reception FEM (e.g., the reception FEM396 a, 396 b, or 396 c) of a communication module in an electronicdevice according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 5, the reception FEM 396 a, 396 b, or 396 c mayinclude a filter 510, a low noise amplifier 520, and/or a bypass path530. A reception signal provided from an antenna may be filtered by thefilter 510, may be amplified by the low noise amplifier 520 or may passthrough the bypass path 530, and may be transferred to an RFIC (e.g.,the RFIC 392).

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, an electronic device(e.g., the electronic device 101 of FIG. 1) may include a plurality ofantennas (e.g., the antennas 290 a, 290 b, 290 c, and 290 d), at leastone reception front end module (FEM) (e.g., reception FEMs 396 a, 396 b,and 396 c) configured to process a reception signal received via atleast one of the plurality of antennas; at least onetransmission/reception FEM (e.g., transmission/reception FEM 394)configured to process a transmission signal transmitted via at least oneof the plurality of antennas and a reception signal received via atleast one of the plurality of antennas; at least one switch (e.g., thetransmission switch 294, the first switch 398 a, the second switch 398b, and the third switch 398 c) configured to form a path among the atleast one reception FEM, the at least one transmission FEM, and theplurality of antennas; and at least one processor (e.g., the processor120 or the communication module 190). The at least one processor isconfigured to: transmit a signal via a first antenna subset (e.g., thefirst antenna 290 a) including at least one of the plurality ofantennas; measure the emission environment of the plurality of antennas,using the signal; determine at least one antenna to be used fortransmission of a sounding reference signal (SRS), based on the emissionenvironment; and transmit the SRS via the at least one determinedantenna. The emission environment may include the strength of areflected signal that corresponds to the signal and is reflected by thefirst antenna subset, or the strength of a reception signal thatcorresponds to the signal and is detected by a second antenna subset(e.g., the second antenna 290 b, the third antenna 290 c, and the fourthantenna 290 d) including at least one remaining antenna.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the emissionenvironment may be determined based on the ratio of the strength of thereflected signal to the strength of the signal, or the ratio of thestrength of the reception signal to the strength of the signal.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the at least oneprocessor (e.g., the processor 120 or the communication module 190) mayfurther be configured to transmit the SCS by sequentially switching theat least one antenna.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the first antennasubset (e.g., the first antenna 290 a) may include as many antennas asthe number of the at least one transmission/reception FEMs.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the at least oneprocessor (e.g., the processor 120 or the communication module 190) mayfurther be configured to: measure the strength of a reflected signalcorresponding to at least one antenna included in the first antennasubset (e.g., the first antenna 290 a); and measure a strength of areception signal detected by at least one antenna included in the secondantenna subset if the strength of the reflected signal is less than afirst threshold value.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the at least oneprocessor (e.g., the processor 120 of the communication module 190) mayfurther be configured to transmit, to a base station, capabilityinformation related to a transmit antenna switching (TAS) operation thattransmits the SCS by sequentially switching the plurality of antennas(e.g., the antennas 290 a, 290 b, 290 c, and 290 d).

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the capabilityinformation indicates at least one of whether to perform the TASoperation or a number of antennas switched by the TAS operation.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the at least oneprocessor (e.g., the processor 120 or the communication module 190) mayfurther be configured to change an antenna used for uplink communicationwith a base station, if the strength of the reflected signal exceeds athreshold value.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the at least oneprocessor (e.g., the processor 120 or the communication module 190) mayfurther be configured to measure the emission environment of theplurality of antennas, in response to start of a service that requires adata transmission rate greater than or equal to a threshold value, or inresponse to a data error rate, less than or equal to a threshold value,during multiple input multiple output (MIMO) reception.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the electronicdevice 101 may perform a TAS operation using the above-mentionedconfiguration. In association with performing a TAS operation, theelectronic device 101 may measure an emission environment, and maycontrol whether to perform the TAS operation and/or a configurationassociated with the TAS operation, based on the emission environment.The emission environment may be related to a quality of a channel that aplurality of antennas, which may be switched by the TAS operation, mayexperience, and may be related to whether a gain occurs by MIMOtechnology. The emission environment may be related to a factor thatoccurs during a relatively long period of time, such as a condition ofholding or a weak electric field, as opposed to a short time fadingwhich occurs randomly.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart 600 illustrating a process of transmitting asounding reference signal (SCS) by an electronic device according to anembodiment of the disclosure. The subject that performs the operationsin the flowchart 600 of FIG. 6 may be understood as the electronicdevice 101 or the components (e.g., the processor 120 or thecommunication module 190) of the electronic device 101.

Referring to FIG. 6, in operation 601, the electronic device 101 (e.g.,the processor 120 or the communication module 190) may transmit a signalvia a first antenna subset. The signal may be transmitted via an uplinkresource allocated by a base station for uplink communication. Thesignal may include data (e.g., traffic or control information) forcommunication with the base station. The first antenna subset mayinclude at least one antenna allocated for uplink communication, forexample, the first antenna 290 a of FIG. 3A. For example, an uplinksignal generated by the RFIC 392 may be processed by thetransmission/reception FEM 394, and may be transmitted via the firstantenna 290 a.

In operation 603, the electronic device 101 may measure the emissionenvironment of the first antenna subset and a second antenna subsetusing the transmitted signal. The second antenna subset may include atleast one antenna, remaining after excluding at least one antennaincluded in the first antenna subset, among the usable antennas. Forexample, while performing uplink communication, the electronic device101 may measure the emission environment of the first antenna subset andthe second antenna subset, without generating an additional signal. Theemission environment may be measured in order to estimate the level ofgain which may be obtained when MIMO reception is performed using thefirst antenna subset and the second antenna subset. For example, if anantenna is blocked due to holding by a user, the emission environmentmay be measured to be poor when the electronic device 101 enters a weakelectric field.

In operation 605, the electronic device 101 may determine thetransmission scheme of a sounding reference signal (SRS), based on theemission environment. The transmission scheme of an SRS may include thenumber of antennas to be used for transmitting an SRS and/or whether totransmit an SRS. For example, the number of antennas to be used fortransmitting an SRS may depend on the number of antennas that arepresent in an emission environment above a predetermined level.

In operation 607, the electronic device 101 may operate according to thedetermined transmission scheme of an SRS. If it is determined that aplurality of antennas are to be used for transmitting an SRS, theelectronic device 101 may transmit SRSs via a plurality of antennasusing a TAS operation. If it is determined that a single antenna is tobe used for transmitting an SRS, the electronic device may transmit anSRS without performing a TAS operation.

FIG. 7A is a flowchart 700 illustrating a process of measuring anemission environment using a reception signal, by an electronic deviceaccording to an embodiment of the disclosure. The subject that performsthe operations in the flowchart 700 of FIG. 7A may be understood as theelectronic device 101 or the components (e.g., the processor 120 or thecommunication module 190) of the electronic device 101. FIG. 7Aillustrates operations for measuring an emission environment for atleast one antenna included in a second antenna subset. Hereinafter, afirst antenna is included in a first antenna subset, and a secondantenna is included in the second antenna subset.

Referring to FIG. 7A, in operation 701, the electronic device 101 (e.g.,the processor 120, the communication module 190, or the RFIC 392) mayreceive, using the second antenna, a signal transmitted via the firstantenna. In order to perform uplink communication using an uplinkresource allocated by a base station, the electronic device 101 maytransmit a signal via the first antenna. The signal transmitted via thefirst antenna may be received via the second antenna included in theelectronic device 101.

In operation 703, the electronic device 101 may measure the strength ofthe signal received by the second antenna. The electronic device 101 mayprocess the signal received by the second antenna, and may measure thestrength of the signal, using a reception circuit (e.g., the receptionFEM 396 a) which is not used for communication with the base stationduring uplink communication. The strength of the signal received by thesecond antenna may be used as an index indicating a channel stateassociated with the second antenna (e.g., the state of being blocked byan obstacle or the state of being in a weak electric field). The factthat the signal that is transmitted via the first antenna and isreceived by the second antenna has a high strength may mean that asignal that is to be transmitted from the base station and is to bereceived by the second antenna may also have a high strength.

The operations for measuring an emission environment, which have beendescribed with reference to FIG. 7A, will be described based on theconfiguration of a circuit with reference to FIG. 7B.

FIG. 7B is a diagram illustrating circuits used when an electronicdevice measures an emission environment using a reception signalaccording to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 7B, the transmission switch 294 may form a pathbetween the transmission/reception FEM 394 and the first antenna 290 a,and the first switch 398 a may form a path between the reception FEM 396a and the second antenna 290 b. A signal that is transmitted via thefirst antenna 290 a after passing through the transmission/reception FEM394 may be received by the second antenna 290 b, and the received signalmay be provided to the reception FEM 396 a. The received signal may passthrough a bypass path 530 of the reception FEM 396 a, and may beprovided to the RFIC 392. The RFIC 392 may measure the strength of thesignal, and may determine a value indicating the emission environment ofthe second antenna 290 b.

In the embodiment described with reference to FIG. 7B, the signal maypass through the bypass path 530, and may be provided to the RFIC 392.For example, if the isolation between antennas is about 35 dB, althougha low transmission power is used (e.g., 0 dBm), a signal with a powergreater than a reception power of about -35 dBm may be detected. Sincethe power of the detected signal is greater than the power of thereception signal from the base station, it is determined that themeasured value is reliable although the signal passes through the bypasspath 530 of the reception FEM 396 a. According to other embodiments ofthe disclosure, the signal may pass through a low noise amplifier (e.g.,the low noise amplifier 520) and may be provided to the RFIC 392. Forexample, a received signal is configured to always pass through a lownoise amplifier, or is configured to selectively pass through a lownoise amplifier according to the size of a signal.

As described with reference to FIGS. 7A and 7B, the value indicating theemission environment of the second antenna (e.g., the second antenna 290b) may be determined based on the strength of a received signal.Although an external environment does not change, the strength of areceived signal may depend on the strength of a transmitted signal.However, the performance or efficiency of an antenna does not changedepending on the strength of a transmitted signal. The ratio of thestrength of a transmitted signal to the strength of a received signalmay be expected to be constant if the external environment does notchange. The ratio of the strength of a transmitted signal to thestrength of a received signal may be constant if the externalenvironment does not change. According to an embodiment of thedisclosure, the value indicating the emission environment of the secondantenna 290 b may be determined based on a result of comparison betweenthe strength of a signal transmitted via the first antenna (e.g., thefirst antenna 290 a) and the strength of a signal received via thesecond antenna 290 b. The strength of a transmitted signal may bedetermined based on the strength of a forward signal extracted by acoupler (e.g., the coupler 450) in a transmission/reception FEM, orbased on the strength of a signal generated from an RFIC (e.g., the RFIC392).

FIG. 8A is a flowchart illustrating a process of measuring an emissionenvironment using a reflected signal, by an electronic device accordingto an embodiment of the disclosure. The subject that performs theoperations in the flowchart of FIG. 8A may be understood as theelectronic device 101 or the components (e.g., the processor 120 or thecommunication module 190) of the electronic device 101. FIG. 8Aillustrates operations of measuring an emission environment for at leastone antenna included in a first antenna subset. Hereinafter, a firstantenna may be included in the first antenna subset.

Referring to FIG. 8A, in operation 801, the electronic device 101 (e.g.,the processor 120 or the communication module 190) may detect areflected signal that corresponds to a signal transmitted via the firstantenna. In order to perform uplink communication using an uplinkresource allocated by a base station, the electronic device 101 maytransmit a signal via the first antenna. If a signal is output from atransmission circuit to an antenna for uplink communication, a part ofthe signal may not be emitted via the antenna but may be reflected. Inorder to detect the reflected signal, the electronic device 101 mayperform coupling of the reflected signal in the transmission circuit.

In operation 803, the electronic device 101 may measure the strength ofthe reflected signal. The strength of the reflected signal from thefirst antenna may be used as an index indicating a channel stateassociated with the first antenna (e.g., the state of being blocked byan obstacle or the state of being in a weak electric field). The factthat a reflected signal from the first antenna is detected and thedetected reflected signal has a high strength may mean that the firstantenna is in a poor emission environment.

The operations for measuring an emission environment, which have beendescribed with reference to FIG. 8A, will be described based on theconfiguration of a circuit with reference to FIG. 8B.

FIG. 8B is a diagram illustrating circuits used when an electronicdevice measures an emission environment using a reflected signalaccording to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 8B, the transmission switch 294 may form a pathbetween the transmission/reception FEM 394 and the first antenna 290 a.A part of a signal, which is transmitted via the first antenna 290 aafter passing through the transmission/reception FEM 394, may bereflected. The coupler 450 in the transmission/reception FEM 394 mayextract a reflected signal using a terminal (e.g., the reverse terminal454) for extracting a reverse signal. The extracted signal may beprovided to the RFIC 392. The RFIC 392 may measure the strength of thereflected signal, and may determine a value indicating the emissionenvironment of the first antenna 290 a. For example, the RFIC 392 maydigitalize the reflected signal using an analog to digital converter(ADC), and may measure the strength of the signal.

As described with reference to FIGS. 8A and 8B, the value indicating theemission environment for the first antenna (e.g., the first antenna 290a) may be determined based on the strength of a reflected signal.Although an external environment does not change, the strength of areflected signal may depend on the strength of a transmitted signal.However, the performance or efficiency of an antenna does not changedepending on the strength of a transmitted signal. The ratio of thestrength of a transmitted signal to the strength of a reflected signalmay be expected to be constant if the external environment does notchange. The ratio of the strength of a transmitted signal to thestrength of a reflected signal may be constant if the externalenvironment does not change. According to an embodiment of thedisclosure, the value indicating the emission environment of the firstantenna 290 a may be determined based on a result of comparison betweenthe strength of a signal transmitted via the first antenna (e.g., thefirst antenna 290 a) and the strength of a signal received via the firstantenna 290 a. The strength of a transmitted signal may be determinedbased on the strength of a forward signal extracted by a coupler (e.g.,450) in a transmission/reception FEM, or based on the strength of asignal generated from an RFIC (e.g., the RFIC 392).

The operations described with reference to FIGS. 7A and 7B may berepeated as many times as the number of antennas included in the secondantenna subset, and the operations described with reference to FIGS. 8Aand 8B may be repeated as many times as the number of antennas includedin the first antenna subset. For example, if the first antenna subsetincludes a single antenna and the second antenna subset includes threeantennas, the travel path of a signal according to the measurement ofthe emission environment may be as shown in FIG. 9.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a travel path of a signal used when theelectronic device 101 measures an emission environment according to anembodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 9, if a transmission signal is emitted via the firstantenna 290 a for uplink transmission, the transmission signal mayarrive at the second antenna 290 b via a first path 901, may arrive atthe third antenna 290 c via a second path 902, or may arrive at thefourth antenna 290 d via a third path 903. A part of the transmissionsignal may be reflected by the first antenna 290 a, and the reflectedsignal may flow in a circuit via a fourth path 904. By measuring thestrength of the transmission signal or a part of the transmission signalthat moves via the first path 901, the second path 902, the third path903, or the fourth path 904, the electronic device 101 may measure anemission environment for the antennas 290 a, 290 b, 290 c, and 290 d.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart 1000 illustrating a process of transmitting asounding reference signal (SRS), by an electronic device according to anembodiment of the disclosure. The subject that performs the operationsin the flowchart 1000 of FIG. 10 may be understood as the electronicdevice 101 or the components (e.g., the processor 120 or thecommunication module 190) of the electronic device 101.

Referring to FIG. 10, in operation 1001, the electronic device 101(e.g., the processor 120 or the communication module 190) may transmit asignal via a first antenna subset. The first antenna subset may includeat least one antenna connected to a transmission circuit (e.g., thetransmission/reception FEM 394). The electronic device 101 may transmita signal including uplink data (e.g., traffic or control information)for communication with a base station.

In operation 1003, the electronic device 101 may measure the strength ofa reflected signal corresponding to the transmitted signal. Theelectronic device 101 may detect the reflected signal, which is nottransmitted via the first antenna subset but is reflected, and maymeasure the strength of the reflected signal.

In operation 1005, the electronic device 101 may identify whether thestrength of the reflected signal is less than a threshold value. Forexample, the threshold value may be defined. The electronic device 101may evaluate the emission environment of at least one antenna includedin the first antenna subset, for example, the emission environment of atransmission antenna, based on the strength of the reflected signal.

If the strength of the reflected signal is greater than or equal to thethreshold value, the electronic device 101 may change the transmissionantenna in operation 1007. The fact that the strength of the reflectedsignal is greater than or equal to the threshold value means that theemission environment is poor. Accordingly, the electronic device 101 maychange an antenna used for transmission to another antenna.

If the strength of the reflected signal is less than the thresholdvalue, the electronic device 101 may measure the strength of a receptionsignal in a second antenna subset in operation 1009. A reception circuitis not used for uplink communication, and thus, the electronic device101 may process a signal, which is transmitted via the first antennasubset and is received via least one antenna included in the secondantenna subset, using the reception circuit.

In operation 1011, the electronic device 101 may identify whether one ormore antennas, at which the strength of a reception signal is greaterthan or equal to a threshold value, exist. The electronic device 101 mayidentify the number of antennas that detect a signal of which thestrength is greater than or equal to the threshold value, among at leastone antenna included in the second antenna subset.

If the number of antennas, at which the strength of a reception signalis greater than or equal to the threshold value, is fewer than one, theelectronic device 101 may perform communication without a TAS operationin operation 1013. For example, the electronic device 101 may transmit asounding signal using at least one antenna included in the first antennasubset, or may operate without transmission of a sounding signal.According to an embodiment of the disclosure, if a plurality of antennasare included in the first antenna subset, for example, if a plurality oftransmission circuits are included, the electronic device 101 maytransmit SRSs via the plurality of antennas included in the firstantenna subset using a TAS operation.

If one or more antennas, at which the strength of a reception signal isgreater than or equal to the threshold value, exist, the electronicdevice 101 may transmit an SRS using a TAS operation in operation 1015.At least one antenna included in the first antenna subset and at leastone antenna included in the second antenna subset are usable fortransmission of an SRS, and thus, the electronic device 101 may use atleast two antennas. The electronic device 101 may transmit SRSs via atleast two antennas using a TAS operation.

According to above-described various embodiments of the disclosure, theelectronic device 101 may determine the number of antennas used fortransmitting an SRS, based on the emission environment of antennas.According to an embodiment of the disclosure, if the number of antennasis determined, the electronic device 101 may transmit TASoperation-related information to a base station. For example, the TASoperation-related information is capability information of theelectronic device 101, and may indicate at least one of whether toperform a TAS operation, the number of antennas switched by a TASoperation, and/or the number of streams supportable for MIMO reception.For example, if the emission environment of two or more and less thanfour antennas is good (e.g., the strength of a reflected signal is lessthan a first threshold value or the strength of a received signal isgreater than or equal to a second threshold value), the electronicdevice 101 may transmit capability information indicating that a TASoperation using two antennas is allowed or a two-receive (RX) MIMOoperation is allowed. For example, if the emission environment for fourantennas is good (e.g., the strength of a reflected signal is less thana first threshold value or the strength of a received signal is greaterthan or equal to a second threshold value), the electronic device 101may transmit capability information indicating that a TAS operationusing four antennas is allowed and capability information indicatingthat a four-RX MIMO operation is allowed.

The TAS operation-related information, which is transmitted to a basestation, may be utilized for scheduling by the base station. The basestation may determine the amount of resources (e.g., the number ofsymbols) used for transmission of an SRS, based on the TASoperation-related information, and may determine the number of streamsto be transmitted via MIMO transmission. For example, based on thenumber of antennas to be switched by a TAS operation, the base stationmay allocate a resource for transmitting an SRS for the electronicdevice 101. For example, if the TAS operation is not performed, the basestation may not perform MIMO transmission for the electronic device 101,and may not allocate a resource for transmitting an SRS.

FIG. 11 is diagram illustrating examples of resource usage by anelectronic device according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 11, sounding reference signals (SRSs) may betransmitted in a plurality of symbols or slots. In an interval 1122, theelectronic device 101 may be scheduled to transmit SRSs according to afirst situation 1110. However, according to a second situation 1120, theelectronic device 101 may be scheduled to perform downlink communicationor uplink communication without transmission of SRSs. For example,according to the second situation 1120, the electronic device 101 maytransmit capability information, indicating not performing of a TASoperation, to a base station, before the interval 1122. Accordingly, thebase station may not allocate a resource for transmitting an SRS in theinterval 1122.

According to above-described various embodiments of the disclosure, theelectronic device 101 may measure an emission environment, and maydetermine whether to perform a TAS operation according to the measuredemission environment. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, if apredetermined condition is satisfied, the electronic device 101 maymeasure an emission environment in order to determine whether to performa TAS operation. For example, an emission environment may be measured ifa change in the emission environment is expected, or if MIMO receptionis needed. For example, in response to start of a service that requiresa data transmission rate greater than or equal to a threshold value, adata error rate less than or equal to a threshold value during MIMOreception, and a rapid increase in a data error rate during MIMOreception, the electronic device 101 may perform operations of measuringan emission environment.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, a method of anelectronic device (e.g., the electronic device 101 of FIG. 1) mayinclude: transmitting a signal via a first antenna subset (e.g., thefirst antenna 290 a) including at least one of a plurality of antennas(e.g., antennas 290 a, 290 b, 290 c, and 290 d); measuring an emissionenvironment of the plurality of antennas, using the signal; determiningat least one antenna to be used for transmitting a sounding referencesignal (SRS), based on the emission environment; and transmitting theSRS via the at least one determined antenna. The emission environmentmay include the strength of a reflected signal that corresponds to thesignal and is reflected by the first antenna subset, or the strength ofa reception signal that corresponds to the signal and is detected by asecond antenna subset (e.g., the second antenna 290 b, the third antenna290 c, and the fourth antenna 290 d) including at least one remainingantenna.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the emissionenvironment may be determined based on the ratio of the strength of thereflected signal to the strength of the signal, or the ratio of thestrength of the reception signal to the strength of the signal.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the operation oftransmitting the reference signal may include: transmitting the SCS bysequentially switching the at least one antenna.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the first antennasubset (e.g., the first antenna 290 a) may include as many antennas asthe number of front end modules (FEMs) (e.g., the transmission/receptionFEM 394) for transmission.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the signaltransmitted via the first antenna subset may be transmitted via aresource allocated for uplink communication with a base station.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the operation ofmeasuring the emission environment of the plurality of antennas (e.g.,the antennas 290 a, 290 b, 290 c, and 290 d) using the signal mayinclude: measuring the strength of a reflected signal corresponding toat least one antenna included in the first antenna subset (e.g., thefirst antenna 290 a); and if the strength of the reflected signal isless than a first threshold value, measuring a strength of a receptionsignal detected by at least one antenna included in the second antennasubset.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the method mayfurther include: transmitting, to a base station, capability informationrelated to a transmit antenna switching (TAS) operation which transmitsthe SCS by sequentially switching the plurality of antennas (e.g., theantennas 290 a, 290 b, 290 c, and 290 d). The capability information mayindicate at least one of whether to perform the TAS operation, or anumber of antennas to be switched by the TAS operation.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the method mayfurther include: changing an antenna used for uplink communication witha base station if the strength of the reflected signal exceeds athreshold value.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, the operation ofmeasuring the emission environment of the plurality of antennas (e.g.,the antennas 290 a, 290 b, 290 c, and 290 d) may include: measuring theemission environment of the plurality of antennas in response to startof a service that requires a data transmission rate greater than orequal to a threshold value, or in response to a data error rate, lessthan or equal to a threshold value, during MIMO reception.

According to above-described various embodiments of the disclosure, theelectronic device 101 may recognize the emission environment ofantennas, without using an additional resource or power. From theperspective of the electronic device 101, the electronic device 101 maydetermine with high reliability an emission environment for each antennaby using a transmission signal, which has a high strength when beingreceived.

According to above-mentioned various embodiments of the disclosure,resources available for data communication may be more secured byreducing unnecessary SRS transmission, and thus, throughput may beimproved. Also, unnecessary power consumption by the electronic device101 may be prevented and a battery duration time may be increased, byreducing unnecessary SRS transmission.

An electronic device according to various embodiments may be one of thevarious types of devices. The electronic device may include, forexample, a portable communication device (e.g., a smart phone), acomputer device, a portable multimedia device, a portable medicaldevice, a camera, a wearable device, or home appliances. The electronicdevice according to an embodiment is not limited to the above-describeddevices.

The electronic device according to various embodiments may be one ofvarious types of electronic devices. The electronic devices may include,for example, a portable communication device (e.g., a smartphone), acomputer device, a portable multimedia device, a portable medicaldevice, a camera, a wearable device, or a home appliance. According toan embodiment of the disclosure, the electronic devices are not limitedto those described above.

It should be appreciated that various embodiments of the disclosure andthe terms used therein are not intended to limit the technologicalfeatures set forth herein to particular embodiments and include variouschanges, equivalents, or replacements for a corresponding embodiment.With regard to the description of the drawings, similar referencenumerals may be used to refer to similar or related elements. It is tobe understood that a singular form of a noun corresponding to an itemmay include one or more of the things, unless the relevant contextclearly indicates otherwise. As used herein, each of such phrases as “Aor B,” “at least one of A and B,” “at least one of A or B,” “A, B, orC,” “at least one of A, B, and C,” and “at least one of A, B, or C,” mayinclude any one of, or all possible combinations of the items enumeratedtogether in a corresponding one of the phrases. As used herein, suchterms as “1st” and “2nd,” or “first” and “second” may be used to simplydistinguish a corresponding component from another, and does not limitthe components in other aspect (e.g., importance or order). It is to beunderstood that if an element (e.g., a first element) is referred to,with or without the term “operatively” or “communicatively”, as “coupledwith,” “coupled to,” “connected with,” or “connected to” another element(e.g., a second element), it means that the element may be coupled withthe other element directly (e.g., wiredly), wirelessly, or via a thirdelement.

As used herein, the term “module” may include a unit implemented inhardware, software, or firmware, and may interchangeably be used withother terms, for example, “logic,” “logic block,” “part,” or“circuitry”. A module may be a single integral component, or a minimumunit or part thereof, adapted to perform one or more functions. Forexample, according to an embodiment of the disclosure, the module may beimplemented in a form of an application-specific integrated circuit(ASIC).

Various embodiments as set forth herein may be implemented as software(e.g., the program 140) including one or more instructions that arestored in a storage medium (e.g., internal memory 136 or external memory138) that is readable by a machine (e.g., the electronic device 101).For example, a processor (e.g., the processor 120) of the machine (e.g.,the electronic device 101) may invoke at least one of the one or moreinstructions stored in the storage medium, and execute it, with orwithout using one or more other components under the control of theprocessor. This allows the machine to be operated to perform at leastone function according to the at least one instruction invoked. The oneor more instructions may include a code generated by a complier or acode executable by an interpreter. The machine-readable storage mediummay be provided in the form of a non-transitory storage medium. Wherein,the term “non-transitory” simply means that the storage medium is atangible device, and does not include a signal (e.g., an electromagneticwave), but this term does not differentiate between where data issemi-permanently stored in the storage medium and where the data istemporarily stored in the storage medium.

According to an embodiment of the disclosure, a method according tovarious embodiments of the disclosure may be included and provided in acomputer program product. The computer program product may be traded asa product between a seller and a buyer. The computer program product maybe distributed in the form of a machine-readable storage medium (e.g.,compact disc read only memory (CD-ROM)), or be distributed (e.g.,downloaded or uploaded) online via an application store (e.g.,PlayStore™), or between two user devices (e.g., smart phones) directly.If distributed online, at least part of the computer program product maybe temporarily generated or at least temporarily stored in themachine-readable storage medium, such as memory of the manufacturer'sserver, a server of the application store, or a relay server.

According to various embodiments of the disclosure, each component(e.g., a module or a program) of the above-described components mayinclude a single entity or multiple entities. According to variousembodiments of the disclosure, one or more of the above-describedcomponents may be omitted, or one or more other components may be added.Alternatively or additionally, a plurality of components (e.g., modulesor programs) may be integrated into a single component. In such a case,according to various embodiments of the disclosure, the integratedcomponent may still perform one or more functions of each of theplurality of components in the same or similar manner as they areperformed by a corresponding one of the plurality of components beforethe integration. According to various embodiments of the disclosure,operations performed by the module, the program, or another componentmay be carried out sequentially, in parallel, repeatedly, orheuristically, or one or more of the operations may be executed in adifferent order or omitted, or one or more other operations may beadded.

While the disclosure has been shown and described with reference tovarious embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled inthe art that various changes in form and details may be made thereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure as definedby the appended claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of an electronic device, the methodcomprising: transmitting a signal via a first antenna subset includingat least one of a plurality of antennas; measuring an emissionenvironment of the plurality of antennas, using the signal; determiningat least one antenna to be used for transmitting a sounding referencesignal (SRS), based on the emission environment; and transmitting theSRS via the at least one determined antenna, wherein the emissionenvironment is determined based on a strength of a reflected signal thatcorresponds to the signal and is reflected by the first antenna subset,or a strength of a reception signal that corresponds to the signal andis received by a second antenna subset including at least one remainingantenna.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the emission environment isdetermined based on a ratio of the strength of the reflected signal to astrength of the signal, or a ratio of the strength of the receptionsignal to the strength of the signal.
 3. The method of claim 1, whereinthe transmitting the reference signal comprises: transmitting the SCS bysequentially switching the at least one antenna.
 4. The method of claim1, wherein the first antenna subset includes as many antennas as anumber of front end modules (FEMs) for transmission.
 5. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the signal transmitted via the first antenna subset istransmitted via a resource allocated for uplink communication with abase station.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the measuring theemission environment of the plurality of antennas using the signalcomprises: measuring a strength of a reflected signal corresponding toat least one antenna included in the first antenna subset; and if thestrength of the reflected signal is less than a first threshold value,measuring a strength of a reception signal detected by at least oneantenna included in the second antenna subset.
 7. The method of claim 1,further comprising: transmitting, to a base station, capabilityinformation related to a transmit antenna switching (TAS) operationwhich transmits the SCS by sequentially switching the plurality ofantennas.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the capability informationindicates at least one of whether to perform the TAS operation, or anumber of antennas to be switched by the TAS operation.
 9. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: changing an antenna used for uplinkcommunication with a base station if the strength of the reflectedsignal exceeds a threshold value.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein themeasuring the emission environment of the plurality of antennascomprises: measuring the emission environment of the plurality ofantennas in response to start of a service that requires a datatransmission rate greater than or equal to a threshold value, or inresponse to a data error rate, less than or equal to a threshold value,during multiple input multiple output (MIMO) reception.
 11. Anelectronic device comprising: a plurality of antennas; at least onereception front end module (FEM) configured to process a receptionsignal received via at least one of the plurality of antennas; at leastone transmission/reception FEM configured to process a transmissionsignal transmitted via at least one of the plurality of antennas and areception signal received via at least one of the plurality of antennas;at least one switch configured to form a path among the at least onereception FEM, the at least one transmission FEM, and the plurality ofantennas; and at least one processor configured to: transmit a signalvia a first antenna subset including at least one of the plurality ofantennas, measure an emission environment of the plurality of antennas,using the signal, determine at least one antenna to be used fortransmission of a sounding reference signal (SRS), based on the emissionenvironment, and transmit the SRS via the at least one determinedantenna, wherein the emission environment includes a strength of areflected signal that corresponds to the signal and is reflected by thefirst antenna subset, or a strength of a reception signal thatcorresponds to the signal and is received by a second antenna subsetincluding at least one remaining antenna.
 12. The electronic device ofclaim 11, wherein the emission environment is determined based on aratio of the strength of the reflected signal to a strength of thesignal, or a ratio of the strength of the reception signal to thestrength of the signal.
 13. The electronic device of claim 11, whereinthe at least one processor is further configured to transmit the SCS bysequentially switching the at least one antenna.
 14. The electronicdevice of claim 11, wherein the first antenna subset comprises as manyantennas as a number of the at least one transmission/reception FEMs.15. The electronic device of claim 11, wherein the signal transmittedvia the first antenna subset is transmitted via a resource allocated foruplink communication with a base station.
 16. The electronic device ofclaim 11, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:measure a strength of a reflected signal corresponding to at least oneantenna included in the first antenna subset, and if the strength of thereflected signal is less than a first threshold value, measure astrength of a reception signal detected by at least one antenna includedin the second antenna subset.
 17. The electronic device of claim 11,wherein the at least one processor is further configured to transmit, toa base station, capability information related to a transmit antennaswitching (TAS) operation that transmits the SCS by sequentiallyswitching the plurality of antennas.
 18. The electronic device of claim17, wherein the capability information indicates at least one of whetherto perform the TAS operation or a number of antennas switched by the TASoperation.
 19. The electronic device of claim 11, wherein the at leastone processor is further configured to change an antenna used for uplinkcommunication with a base station, if the strength of the reflectedsignal exceeds a threshold value.
 20. The electronic device of claim 11,wherein the at least one processor is further configured to measure theemission environment of the plurality of antennas, in response to startof a service that requires a data transmission rate greater than orequal to a threshold value, or in response to a data error rate, lessthan or equal to a threshold value, during multiple input multipleoutput (MIMO) reception.